The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for depositing baking dough or confectionery mass onto a surface in the manufacture of cookies, confectionery and the like.
Typically, baking dough or confectionery mass, used, for example, in manufacturing cookies and some candies, is formulated and prepared in a mixer. Such dough or confectionary mass, due to its nature, is not truly or strictly a homogeneous substance, due to such variables as temperature, humidity and the like, which may not be absolutely uniform throughout the mix.
Generally, a dough or confectionery mass is placed in a depositing apparatus after having been prepared. Such apparatus typically includes a hopper having an open top to receive the prepared mix, and one or more feed rollers or other discharge devices positioned at least partially within the confines of the hopper. Such devices force the "mix" (as used herein, any dough or confectionery mass) through a plurality of apertures and into deposition or extrusion dies, cups or nozzles which open through the bottom of the hopper. The mix is extruded onto a moving conveyor positioned underneath the hopper. Provision, usually in the form of a shiftable wire or blade, is made for severing the dough after a particular portion of it is extruded, so that a plurality of shapes or forms of cookies or candy, for example, are deposited on the conveyor in a plurality of transversely spaced lanes. The shapes are arranged in tandem within each lane. The conveyor moves the shapes to an oven for baking, or to other stations for other processing. Examples of dough depositing apparatus may be found in commonly owned U.S. Pat. No. 3,547,050, entitled DOUGH DEPOSITING MACHINE and issued on Dec. 15, 1970, in the name of Verhoeven and commonly owned U.S. Pat. No. 3,940,226, entitled APPARATUS FOR DISPENSING DOUGH IN A PATTERN UTILIZING MOVEABLE NOZZLES and issued on Feb. 24, 1976, in the name of Verhoeven.
Problems have been experienced with controlling the weight of the cookie and candy shapes deposited onto the conveyor so that each shape has substantially the same weight. The apertures opening into the dies are usually of a fixed cross-sectional area. This cross-sectional area defines the flow area into the nozzles or dies and the dough flow rate through the dies is directly related to the area. Different amounts by weight and/or volume of the dough may be deposited onto the conveyor from different apertures and dies due to differences in dough consistency and/or flow rates. The cookie or candy shapes in adjacent lanes on the conveyor may not be substantially the same weight. As a result, some shapes may be too large or some shapes may be too small in adjacent lanes. This problem can reduce the overall quality and/or uniformity of the resulting cookie or candy product. The mix may be wasted, in that a fewer number of cookie or candy shapes may be formed from a given quantity of mix than desired or anticipated.
At least one attempt has been made to solve the aforementioned problem. In this attempt, an elongated rod-like member or screw has been inserted into the aperture and/or the die area in an attempt to control the mix flowing through the extrusion die. The rod introduces a certain restriction. The mix being forced through the aperture and into the extrusion die must pass around and over the rod. This method is of very limited usefulness and has not provided acceptable weight and/or volume control of the cookie or candy forms or shapes deposited onto the conveyor beneath the hopper.